36. I prefer the feel and hit of a hard tip. Which is harder, the standard brown or the black. How does the hardness rate compare to a Hercules hard, Moori hard, or Talisman hard or extra hard? When installing a Kamui tip, do they 100% require a pad first?Well, both tips feel hard. The performance of original and the black are different. And that is up to the player to discover what is best for their style of play. We do not require a pad to be installed first. Originally, a pad was used to protect an Ivory ferrule from splitting. A pad does not add or take away from the performance of a Kamui tip.

Author:

KamuiTipsdotcom [ Mon Jul 08, 2013 12:08 am ]

Post subject:

Re: ATTM Kamui Style

Jack Flanagan wrote:

37. I see people scuff & scuff & scuff a tip until it is no more. Others are the Ron Popeil of tips; they set it & forget it...What do you recommend on the shaping & care of the Kamui tips ? (scuffers, shapers, etc.)J...thanksWe developed the tip to not lose it's shape on it's own from normal use. Abrasives will cause the Kamui tip to lose it's shape but also a bad shaping tool will mangle the Kamui leather. Our leather is so stable that the only necessity for a tool is to remove the glaze the tip develops from abrasive chalk and hitting a shinny cue ball. The leather wants to mimic the surface it attaches and connects to. In the beginning when we started to make our tips we learned real fast that players have learned many ways of maintaining their tip and assumed that Kamui is the same. But our tip isn't. That is why we developed the Kamui Gator Grip. It has a fine stainless steel textured plate to roll the glazed tip over. The Kamui Gator Grip is ment to do only one thing. Bring the tip back to the way it was when the tip installer first installed the tip.

If you ever need to reshape the Kamui tip, we recommend to players to just take it to their local authorized installer.

Author:

KamuiTipsdotcom [ Mon Jul 08, 2013 12:37 am ]

Post subject:

Re: ATTM Kamui Style

Greg Berger wrote:

My questions are similar but a bit more broad than the posting from wyattearp. 38. What is your opinion about how the industry rates and classifies tip hardness?I would assume you are talking about a durometer. A durometer was never meant to measure hardness of a porous organic material. It was meant to measure plastic, rubber, and metal. The indentor is so tiny that it measures the surface tension and that is it. Too small to measure. Now, stop and think at that process to measure hardness. Does that seam accurate at all? It might be ok to help you guess and make a judgement about the tip but that is all it is good for. Also, wouldn't the physics and characteristics of the tip change when the tip is installed? YES. So, how could we accurately (as tip fitter) measure the tips we purchase. You can't without damaging each tip.39. Is there any way to provide more consistent ratings for tips? IMHO, no each tip maker has different specs and inconsistent control of the leather. And what it seams from your question is you want to provide consistency for your players and feel the burden is on you to fix what the tip maker can't control.40. How does Kamui classify the hardness of its tips? Our classification is SS, S, M, H.41. Does Kamui attempt correlate their hardness classifications with those from other tip manufacturers? Thanks for the insights.We hate chasing a moving target just as much as you do. So, this is how we did it. We understood that making a hard tip is the easiest tip to make, I am sure you can agree as your table vice has crushed a piece of leather a time or two BUT! The hardest tip to make is a soft tip and a Super Soft tip that does not mushroom is key. So, SS(hardest) to H(easiest) we can easily find the 2 tips in between.

I want to thank John and Masato for taking time out of their schedule to answer some of our questions, I think we have learned a lot about Kamui and what they are trying to do. I am afraid that we won't have time for any follow up questions as these guys are heading to Vegas for the BCA show. This thread will now be locked and here for all to read for the future. I learned a few things as I hope everyone did, again Thank you guys it's much appreciated.

If anyone runs into these guys at any of the shows please let them know you saw this, and give their stuff a try. I for one got my first Kamui (not a clear) at SBE this yer and got to try it for a month before I could no longer play, in a few weeks I hope to continue the trial and also plan to give the new clear tips a shot, but so far I did like the way it played.

Good luck in Vegas guys and in the future, it's good to have players out there who see room for improvements in the billiards equipment and who are willing to try to make some new innovations for the good of the game, if the product is good I think the money will follow.